Phobia
by xxlightmycandle
Summary: Angel has a problem. Collins just wants to sleep. What will happen! No one knows......except me. R and R optional.


Phobia

I wrote this just now and it's like 4:40 in the morning. This is mostly based off my fear of spiders. Not mice though, I think they're cute. R and R if you want! Most of this is just stuff from my head because I can't sleep.

**Disclaimer**: I do NOT own RENT. I'm not that creative. That's Jonathan Larson's department.

Collins flopped down on the old battered couch in exhaustion. He closed his eyes and sighed deeply. Three straight hours of grading term papers. One after the other after the other. But now he was done. Finally he could get some rest. He had just drifted into sleep when..."AHHH!" Collins bolted up cranky from being woken. "What the...?" '_Wait. Oh my god. Angel!_' His anger disappearing he quickly got up and ran to the bathroom door where the scream had originated.

"Angel?" He waited. There was no response. "Angel? Baby, you ok?" Still nothing. '_**Is** she ok?...Well of course she's not, she screamed...Should I call 911?...Shit, what do I do?_' "...Collins?" '_Oh thank God.' _He hesitated still unsure of what to do and said "Angel, are you hurt?" "No. But I need your help. Please get in here."she begged. "O...Ok I'm coming in."

He opened the door slowly expecting some psycho killer to jump out at him. But when he opened the door the only person he saw was Angel. And though shaking in the corner looking throughly scared out of her wits and armed with a toilet scrubber everything seemed...completely fine. At this point Collins was very confused. What was this unknown terror that scared his lover so?

Angel's eyes flickered toward him finally acknowledging his presence. "Come here." she demanded in a whisper gesturing frantically. "Hurry c'mon honey."Collins took a slow step forward still in the dark as to what was taking place. He now stood next to Angel and looked around. "Ok, girl you're weirding me out. What's going on?" Angel answered with a glare and the sharp whisper of, "Well while _you _were sleeping, _I_ almost got eaten!" At that moment her declaration made absolutely no sense at all to him. "Eaten? Um..._what _exactly tried to eat you?" Angel shuddered with disgust and pointed with her scrubber to the corner next to the sink. "That!" and shuddered again. Collins turned to where she pointed.

"Oh man..." he said softly. He just couldn't believe his eyes. This was no predator as he had thought, nor a rabid animal,...not even a_ rat_ for God's sake. It was a mouse. Just a mouse. Not only that, but it was the tiniest mouse imaginable. Probably still a baby no less. And here _his_ Angel, a full grown...drag queen, quivering in utter fear at the sight of it. "Angel, sweetie," he started gently " I hate to disappoint you but that's a..." "I know what it is and it tried to eat me!" she interrupted. "Look! It even made me drop my makeup!...and...clog the toilet."

Collins sighed tiredly. Never a moment's peace. "So...what do you want me to do?" Angel seemed infuriated at this question. "What do I...? I want you to get it out before it attacks me again!"

"Angel, that baby mouse did not attack you."

"Yes it did!" she insisted. Before he could protest again she screamed loudly. "See! Holy fuck it jumped at me! Did you see? Go on get it!" Collins once again sighed. He looked at Angel and the mouse. Angel, then...back at the mouse. "Ok, ok. I'll get it out for you baby."

Angel became less tense and a little more relieved. "Thank you honey. That's all I wanted." The mouse then scampered in her direction. She squealed in fright and ran out the door.

Peering in cautiously, hugging the door frame she added, "Just hurry up please." and shrank away. Collins nodded and rolled up his sleeves. '_Well this shouldn't be too...hey where'd it go?_' Then he heard an all too familiar scream come from the living room. He came out of the bathroom and saw Angel half dancing on the couch, hysterically swinging the scrubber and yelling, "Oh my god it's in here! Ah! It's on the couch! AHH! It's on my foot! I'm gonna die! Help me Tom!" Coming up beside her, he said calmly, "Ok, don't worry Ang. I'm gonna..." and stopped. '_Did she just call me Tom?_' "Collins! Help!" she cried desperately. Angel was now shaking her leg all over the place trying to dislodge the mouse from her foot. Finally she summoned up the courage to grab the mouse with her hand and pull it off. Now realizing the mouse was in her hand, she screamed and hurled it across the room.

It landed dazed on the counter by their hotplate and Collins took this advantage to run and pick it up before it could crawl away. He examined the mouse carefully. Yes, only a baby which was now blinking rapidly slowly regain it's little mousy conscience. "Hey, it's kind of cute." he remarked stroking it thoughtfully. Collins was lucky Angel didn't hurt him for that. Instead, she scrunched up her nose angrily, ('_She's so sexy when she does that._' he thought.) stepped off the couch, and marched into the bathroom to clean up her makeup...and...unclog the toilet.

Still stroking the mouse he said to it softly, "Don't mind her she's having a bad day." Walking towards the bathroom door he continued to say, "Hey, I know! Let's go visit her and you can tell her how sorry you are for scaring her huh? Then maybe you can give her a kiss ok?" He opened the door slowly and crept inside. And from all the other apartments all anyone could hear was, "Hey Angel! Someone wants to say sorry and give you a kiss!" "No! Get that thing away from me!" "C'mon he loves you!" "Nooo!" Then there was the sound of a door opening, numerous feet running across the floor, then another cry of "No!", the slamming of the door and the clicking of a lock.

Collins stood in front of the bedroom door mouse in hand, then turned and walked to the couch chuckling softly. "Maybe _now_ I can get some sleep." And once more, he flopped on the old battered couch, settled the mouse on his stomach, closed his eyes and fell asleep.


End file.
